Cariño, Sanders BBQ Supply make NYT’s list of best restaurants

Two Illinois restaurants scored spots on The New York Times' latest list of 'America's Best Restaurants' for 2025.

According to editors, each year's list is "entirely different" from the previous year, with more than half of the restaurants opening over the last two years. To create this year's list, organizers ate more than 200 meals across 33 states, with food reviewers showing up unannounced and making reservations "the old-fashioned way."

"We pay for all of our food, and we don’t accept freebies," editors wrote. "We eat like you do, with the same hope for a meal to remember, to be welcomed and delighted. These are 50 places where we found just that."

The restaurants on the list are organized alphabetically by state. Some states had no restaurants make the list, including Washington,